The Once and Future Thing
by AngelusPrime
Summary: A century and a half has passed after Mission City and Egypt. What's become of the Cybertronians and their human companions? More importantly, what's become of Earth?--- Rating will go up later due to war themes and some romance.
1. Chapter 1

Well, here's this little puppy. It started way differently, but now it is re-written and re-posted. It mainly deals with movie!verse Transformers, but there will be LOTS of mentions of other franchises and small crossovers when they apply. This was mainly based on .com/'s Transformers' universe, but there are lots of heavy edits on my part. I will give her credit when it's needed.

As for who the bot in question is, come back next chapter to find out!

Transformers © to HasTak and whoever produced the movie, whose name eludes me at the moment.

* * *

**-System reboot initialized.-**

**-System reboot complete. Full system scan initialized.-**

**-Running full system scan.-**

**-Error. Insufficient power: Energy levels at 10.2%. Critical. Full system scan incomplete.- **

**-Emergency stasis lock protocols activated.-**

**-Emergency stasis lock protocols overridden. Issue command.-**

**-Continue system scan. Confirm command.-**

**-Command confirmed.-**

**-Continuing system scan. Emergency energy cells activated. Power core charging: 10.26645%...-**

**-Searching for connection to CPU. Connection failed. Search again? y/n.-**

**-Y. Command: Search again. Confirm.-**

**-Confirmed.-**

**-Connection found. Signal strength: 17.465%. Reason: Unknown. Command?-**

**-Continue system scan. Confirm command. Command confirmed.-**

**-Error. Unable to asses structural integrity: Unknown.-**

**-Error. Unable to asses sensor array. Sensory input: Unknown.-**

**-Error. Unable to asses weapons systems.-**

**-Error. Communications relay not found.-**

**-Error. Firewalls disabled. Antivirus disabled.-**

**-Error.....**

**-Error.....**

**-Error…..**

**-Error…..**

* * *

Consciousness slowly enveloped him as its tiny tendrils caressed the farthest parts of his processor. It took some time to finally acclimate, but once he did, he immediately realized something was very wrong.

Try as he might, he couldn't get his optics to online nor could he feel his limbs, or anything at all for that matter. After a few seconds he finally decided to focus on his internal HUD and its troubling readouts. As a side note, to make matters worse, he couldn't exactly remember his designation.... Regarding his HUD, everything seemed to be unresponsive or malfunctioning and judging by his energy levels, he should have been in deep stasis lock, quite close to a full decom (decommision). Yet, despite all, he felt... calm. Ok. Strangely detached and completely numb, but ok.

He tried accessing his memory core and his personality matrix to try to make sense of his situation (that was yet another problem... the last thing he remembered was Mission City and even that was a bit fuzzy...), but got nothing, just more error messages. It was like some connection somewhere in his body was broken. Confusion took over his processor. He was blind, deaf, mute, paralyzed and amnesiac, but he had no fraggin' idea why but soon, confusion gave way to fear and dread... What if he was in less than friendly hands? Was he even still on earth? Where were the others? Where they in his same situation? What date was it? And what the slaggin' Pit was that detached feeling??

Adding the proverbial energon goodie to the cube, he couldn't even draw air from his nonexistent intakes to simulate a sigh.

Time passed, but he couldn't tell how much thanks to a non-functioning chronometer (yet another broken thing. Hurrah). Meanwhile, his systems kept reminding him of everything that was wrong and how nothing had changed from the last scan, adding to his frustration and confusion. Suddenly, something broke through his pity party. He knew he had felt it before, but he didn't quite remember what it was or why he had felt it before... it was sort of like a tug on his spark. Glad to have something else to focus on besides his numerous malfunctions, he tried to determine what that tug was. It happened more than once, sometimes one after the other. After some time it began to slow down and diminish in strength, but something else was there; instead of just a regular tug, it felt like whoever or whatever was on the other end was in desperate need of comfort and reassurance. He didn't quite know why he knew this, he just did, so tentatively he reached out to the other side, and almost instantly, he felt calm, both on his side and the other. Content, he settled down hoping something would change in the next system scan.

And something did.

By the time the next full system scan came around, he was able to recognize that tug as coming from a spark bond and while he didn't quite remember his secondary designation, he knew he was an autobot. As to who was his spark bonded to, that he still didn't remember. He still kept sending comfort to the other side if only because it made him feel better. All of a sudden something clicked, or felt liked it did. He felt himself go offline and by the time he came to, the detached feeling was gone and he was starting to get some feeling in his limbs.

And then it hit him. Harder than one of Doc Hatchet's wrenches to the back of the cranium, and Primus was that saying something....

The sheer amount of audio imput was staggering. The feedback produced was so painful it sent spasms up and down his entire frame as numerous warnings (adding to the usual ones) flashed accross his HUD. Even though he still couldn't see, his entire vision was filled with a bright light as a flare of pain enveloped him.

Then it all went dark.


	2. Chapter 2

Transformers and Dr. Sumdac © HasTak and the movie and cartoon producers.

Captian Fujioka © to me.

* * *

The energy surge was almost palpable and left everyone in a stunned silence.

After what seemed hours, the lab erupted with the sounds of powered up scanners and lasers and the soft chirps of keyboards being furiously hammered. Above all the cacophony, Dr. Isaac Sumdac, civilian head of the R&D department shouted orders.

"Check his spark frequencies, that surge came from his chest! Peterson, check energon levels! Jablonsky! Nano-bot functions! Leilani, CPU status! Captain Fujioka! Check the smaller one!"

Everyone did as told. Screens popped up everywhere as Dr. Sumdac and the Captain suited up to enter the hangar where the two bots were held. They still hadn't been able to explain why, but these two seemed to emit extremely high doses of radiation, especially the bigger one. One thing they had noticed though, and that was that the radiation coming from the biggest one was surprisingly similar to the atmospheric radiation surrounding Ground Zero and all the other Rad Zones, and knowing the effect that radiation had had on humans during Zero Hour, Dr. Sumdac had ordered the bots quarantined and ordered anyone who came in contact with them to be properly suited up and protected.

As soon as the last latch closed, the two scientists ran to the air lock.

"What do you think that was, Doctor?" The captain, a petite Japanese woman with haunting white on black eyes, asked anxiously.

"I have an idea, but I need to get in there to check. Run every test you know on the smaller one. Their sparks are linked and whatever is affecting the big one will most likely affect him."

The air lock door on the side of the hangar hissed open and they both ran to run their tests, but not before the Captain turned to look at the big bot intently.

-Please don't die...-

* * *

The bright light began to fade as consciousness slowly came back to me.

That was a doozy.

Since when do I say doozy...?

And just like the past few months, as soon as I came back online I immediately knew something was... not quite wrong, but different. I shook my head to try to clear the fuzziness and had to adjust my optics to my surroundings. It was then that I realized that I wasn't exactly in the physical plane. I recognized everything around me right away, thanks to the fact that I had been to this place recently, to bring Prowl back at Jazz and Bluestreak's request.

I was in the Matrix.

The tiny problem was... I hadn't come here on my own, of that much I was certain, so how on earth did I get here?

I stood up and looked around; maybe some answers would pop up out of somewhere. It certainly looked like the Matrix, but slowly I realized something was different. There were no sparks drifting about, only one big, extremely bright light a few feet ahead of me. I started to walk towards it when it hit me.

Perhaps... No... it couldn't be.... But it made sense. It fraggin' made sense. The reason why this Matrix looked different was because this wasn't the regular one younglings learned about at the Lyceums, and this wasn't the one I had accessed not so long ago to find Prowl... this was the Prima Matrix. The place where Primes came when they died.

My intakes hitched. I had accessed this place just once before... and that nearly left me decommissioned. And now here I was again, but not under my own accord. It really only lead to the conclusion that I was dead.

Well, frag it all. He finally did it. Megatron finally killed me for good.

I began to unconsciously slightly congratulate the tenacious bastard. He tried to kill more times than I cared to remember starting that day only a few earth years after we took power in Iacon, and now, he had finally succeeded. Without really wanting, I smiled, but that smiled quickly turned into a frown.

If I was dead... how where the others? Had he gotten to them as well? Were they dead? Was Bumblebee alive and safe? Was Ironhide...

"You do not need to worry yourself so, young Prime."

The voice startled me out of my protoform. Shocked, I turned around and that's when I saw them, the Primes before me. The *dead* Primes before me.

Slowly their figures came into focus: 10 mechs and the one rare femme.

"I am in the place where Primes go when they die leading to the obvious conclusion that I, Optimus *Prime*, am dead, leading to the other quite obvious conclusion that my friends and family out there are alone probably having to deal with my deranged, gloating brother, who is most likely boasting about the fact that he killed me and you're telling me not to worry??"

Ok, where did THAT come from? The sarcasm and snappiness in my voice surprised even me. I hadn't gone off like that since... well... since I was younger. Apparently, it didn't surprise the Primes because I could have sworn I heard the femme chuckle.

"Optimus, you are not dead." The second Prime to my right effectively shut me up. If I wasn't dead, then... why was I in the Prima Matrix? "Remember why you came here before?"

Finding it difficult to process all this information, I couldn't answer immediately. "To... to... split my spark... to create... my sparkling..."

Bumblebee... I hoped and prayed he was alright.

"Exactly. You came here to create a new life, and now it isn't any different. Optimus Prime, you have achieved what all of us only hoped to achieve. With your ultimate sacrifice you showed boundless courage, love and compassion towards your fellow sentient beings and as Primes before you, we are honored to grant you the title of Matrix Templar."

Before I could process THAT, another Prime stepped in.

"Your respect for life is astounding, and because of it, you will now be given the ability to create life. You, the Creation Matrix and the AllSpark are one. Till All are One."

So.... that's what that meant.

This new tidbit of information proved to be a lot to handle and I collapsed. As my systems began to overheat I struggled to stop myself from shaking. The Allspark... and the Creation Matrix... all within me... all... me. If Megatron wanted to kill me before for whatever reason he wanted to kill me, now at least he had a valid one.

"What... how... am I... any different? I mean... I'm sure you've noticed that I'm rambling on like an overenergized youngling here...."

Again, the femme chuckled. What was her name? I vaguely remembered her, mostly because the fact that there had been a female Prime was almost sacrilegious to some and her name was lost to time. Angelus... Angelus Prime, that's what it was.

"That is because like we told you before, the Matrix has granted you a new life. Like the humans you are so fond of say, it turned back the clock on you. You are now younger than you last remember."

Hoo-kay... that one was certainly a doozy. I was sounding like Jazz or Bumblebee because I got de-aged. Wonderful.

All of a sudden, the light behind the Primes began to fade, and tiny electric sparks began to arc through my frame.

"Wait! I have more questions! Where am I physically?? How did this happen? Where are the others!? WAIT!!!!"

As the last Prime faded, I felt myself passing out yet again.

* * *

The big bot jumped to a sitting position, gasping and sending several techs that had come in to the hangar to help flying into walls.

"GET A MED TEAM IN HERE NOW!!!!" Dr. Sumdac screamed as Captain Fujioka rushed to try to restrain the now flailing mech with her telekinesis, but as soon as the mech jolted awake, he calmed down.

His spark chamber began to glow brightly and his optics took on a rich, dark shade of blue. At first he stared forward for a few seconds, but then he slowly turned to face the humans gathered around him.

"I am Optimus Prime, and I thank you for your help." His deep, melodic voice echoed all around. "I must now tend to my son, if you excuse me." He slowly rose to his full height of nearly forty feet and walked towards the berth with the smaller mech.

Dr. Sumdac and Captain Fujioka shared a shocked look. They had been right: that armor-less mech they had found nearly a year ago, buried deep inside a mountain near Ground Zero, was the legendary Optimus Prime, missing since the end of the Cybertron-Earth war in 2065, and the smaller mech was his sparkling, Bumblebee.

They had found the real Autobots at last.

* * *

A few sidenotes.

And the mystery mech is revealed! Also, I apologize for the shameless use of my user name... I feel the Tranformers universe needs more females. A sidenote on that topic: Yes, female cybertronians do exist in my universe, but no, the relationship between them and males is NOT the same as with humans and it shouldn't be. Also, there will be absolutely NO slash in this story of ANY kind (human and cybertronian) and there will be no human/cybertronian pairings (don't get me started on how absolutely ridiculous I think those are); any relationship between humans and cybertronians will be purely platonic or that of predator and prey, friends and allies.

This one was a bit difficult to write, mainly because I was taking Prime out of character by making him spazzy and ranty. That will change though, as the story progresses. He is still movie!Optimus, but his character and personality have a bit more Animated!Optimus in them due to the fact that he got de-aged. Also, writing in first person has never been my strong suit so I apologize if it gets a bit confusing, I promise I'll take all your critiques and reviews to heart as I write more chapters.

As for the unexplained bits, expect the next chapter to be like a history book entry explaining the unexplained. By the way, this takes place nearly a century and a half *after* TF1, which is the main starting point of this little monster, and while there will be a few plot points of the 2009 movie, it is not completely cannon in this universe. I took inspiration from a few stories here on fanfic regarding Optimus' backstory and Bumblebee's origins. As soon as I find them I will give credit where credit is due.

Lastly, anyone out there willing to be my beta reader? I'd love you forever and give you tons of cookies.


End file.
